Scooter Power

Posted:
in AppleOutsider edited January 2014
I have a Roketa (yes I know) Bahama 50 scooter. It ran nicely for about a year and now it has lost power. First of all when I start it, it runs until the engine warms up then dies once. I start it up again and it runs, but if I take off on it, I pull the throttle to the maximum but it slowly speeds up and going up hill is not an option anymore. I cannot even consider having a second person on board.



I have cleaned the air filter, and replaced the spark plug. I have adjusted the throttle from the top of the engine. I did not touch the carburetor at all. Does anyone have any idea what it might be and how I could fix it?



Thank you.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16
    midwinter did some scooter repair not too long ago. Wait for him. He is a regular here.



    As an aside, if I move to San Francisco I'll be getting a scooter myself. This could happen in the next year or so. There's not too much sense in a scooter now, though, because everything beyond walking distance is also beyond scooter distance.
  • Reply 2 of 16
    midwintermidwinter Posts: 10,060member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tiby View Post


    I have a Roketa (yes I know) Bahama 50 scooter. It ran nicely for about a year and now it has lost power. First of all when I start it, it runs until the engine warms up then dies once. I start it up again and it runs, but if I take off on it, I pull the throttle to the maximum but it slowly speeds up and going up hill is not an option anymore. I cannot even consider having a second person on board.



    I have cleaned the air filter, and replaced the spark plug. I have adjusted the throttle from the top of the engine. I did not touch the carburetor at all. Does anyone have any idea what it might be and how I could fix it?



    Thank you.



    I don't know anything about that model, but it could be any of a variety of things:



    1) Clogged exhaust

    2) Carb needing adjustment (not as horrifying as it may seem)

    3) Belts/rollers going bad.



    How comfortable are you taking it apart? How many miles?
  • Reply 3 of 16
    dfilerdfiler Posts: 3,420member
    I find it funny that this guy registered at AI to ask the question...

    Guess he figured computer geeks might know how to fix a (geeky) scooter.



    Next time I have a Mac question, I'm gonna go register on the CarTalk forums.
  • Reply 4 of 16
    i have a scooter as well. yamaha bws 2006. it's a nice scooter. i use it for going to work and roaming the streets and picking up hoes. it goes up to about 70 clicks an hour.



    p.s. i bought it with 180 clicks on it and now have about 1200. i hit a bump one day and it started making a weird noise that seems to be coming from the backsomewhere. do you think you might know what it is? it kind of sounds like something is rubbing. and by hit a bump, i mean hit a 1 foot pot hole.



    there was also one night when i was going to work when i was accelerating and then all of a sudden lost power then it came back, do you know what this might have been as well?
  • Reply 5 of 16
    midwintermidwinter Posts: 10,060member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dfiler View Post


    I find it funny that this guy registered at AI to ask the question...

    Guess he figured computer geeks might know how to fix a (geeky) scooter.



    Next time I have a Mac question, I'm gonna go register on the CarTalk forums.



    I've found that Urbanscootin.com is a good place for Mac tech support.
  • Reply 6 of 16
    regreg Posts: 832member
    I use to have the same problem with my 73 MG Midget if I left the choke pulled all the way out. It almost had as much room as your scooter.
  • Reply 7 of 16
    Could be half a dozen different things.



    Vapor Lock

    Mal-operating float

    clogged fuel filter

    clogged up carb

    paint chipping off inside of gas tank can cause tons of issues



    I own a '02 Bajaj Chetak. I generally ask for tuning, tips, and mod advice on a scooter forum though. You should be able to find one or two that are specific to you scoot. If not, try here:

    http://www.scooterbbs.com/



    Ironically though, geekery in general, pc geekyness, and scooter geeks do not seem very far apart on the ole evolutionary scale. I been looking for a very mobile, wifi enabled, linux based pc that would be easy to pack on the scoot. Something I can use with on long tours. This device I found out about on my scooter forum??? looks kinda interesting:

    http://eeepc.asus.com/en/



    Good luck with the power issue.



    Paz
  • Reply 8 of 16
    pevepeve Posts: 518member
    does your ride have a automatic choke?

    how does the engine sound (normal or "coughing")?



    wild guess:

    -messed up choke

    -floater stuck in carb
  • Reply 9 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by peve View Post


    does your ride have a automatic choke?

    how does the engine sound (normal or "coughing")?



    wild guess:

    -messed up choke

    -floater stuck in carb



    kind of sounds like coughing. it's an automatic transmission, i'm not even sure what a choke is.
  • Reply 10 of 16
    Well, it looks like I'll be getting an electric scooter.
  • Reply 11 of 16
    midwintermidwinter Posts: 10,060member
    Not sure how the choke works on that scoot, but if it's one of those old-school electric bystarter thingies, that may be a red herring. Those were just a needle on a spring with some wax that expanded once it got hot.



    Do this:



    Drain all the gas you can and put in premium (siphon if you have to) along with some carb/fuel system cleaner.



    If that doesn't work, I'd say take the carb off and clean it good.



    If that doesn't work, it might be rings. Easy to do, really, but scary considering you have to take the whole engine apart.
  • Reply 12 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Splinemodel View Post


    Well, it looks like I'll be getting an electric scooter.



    don't go fast enough for my taste.
  • Reply 13 of 16
    trumptmantrumptman Posts: 16,464member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tiby View Post


    I have a Roketa (yes I know) Bahama 50 scooter. It ran nicely for about a year and now it has lost power. First of all when I start it, it runs until the engine warms up then dies once. I start it up again and it runs, but if I take off on it, I pull the throttle to the maximum but it slowly speeds up and going up hill is not an option anymore. I cannot even consider having a second person on board.



    I have cleaned the air filter, and replaced the spark plug. I have adjusted the throttle from the top of the engine. I did not touch the carburetor at all. Does anyone have any idea what it might be and how I could fix it?



    Thank you.



    I have had some similar vehicles only mine are quads including a nice 90CC Roketa.



    To me it sounds like you are going to have to dig into that carb. You mentioned the air filter but did you check if it has a fuel filter? Many of these chinese scooters don't or the one they do come with is not the greatest. Also they are often vacuum fed with regard to moving that fuel so any issues with a fuel cap can cause a problem by making it hard for the fuel to "fall" down into the carb. Try running it with the cap loose or off and see if this fixes it. If not then move onto the carb and cleaning the float bowl and jets.



    Did it sit for any period of time? Gas sure goes bad quickly in this day and age.



    Nick
  • Reply 14 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Rich-Myster View Post


    don't go fast enough for my taste.



    Some of the new ones go quite fast. Most are significantly faster and torquier than anything in the 50cc category, although pricier. I like the fact that they are quiet enough to sneak onto bike lanes, torquey enough to make it up the hills, have no stinky fumes, and, most importantly, can be modified for vast increases in power without the authorities having any clue of what's going on.
  • Reply 15 of 16
    pevepeve Posts: 518member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Rich-Myster View Post


    don't go fast enough for my taste.



    ah yeah? check this out!
  • Reply 16 of 16
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by peve View Post


    ah yeah? check this out!



    Yeah! Electric motors tend to have Earth-shattering torque in comparison to gasoline engines, which actually makes them a lot better for things like scooters (or going 0-60 in under 1 second).
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